ABSTRACT
Objectives: This study, conducted in 2012, was performed to determine the incidence of graft infection after cranioplasty procedures and factors affecting the graft infection rate at Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL). Methodology: This was an observational cross-sectional case study of patients who have undergone cranioplasty at HKL over a period of one year (2012). One hundred seventytwo patients were included in the study. A total of 105 (61.8%) cases were autologous bone flap replacements, and 67 (38.2%) were acrylic cranioplasty. Result: A total of five infected grafts were identified among the 172 cases included in the study, resulting in an overall infection rate of 2.9%. Of this infected group, three (4.5%) were cases of cranioplasty and two (1.9%) were cases of autologous bone flap replacement. There was high proportion of male patients undergoing cranioplasty (118 [or 68.6%]) and only 54 (or 31.4%) female patients. The primary pathology in the majority of patients (126 [or 73.2%]) was due to trauma; only 46 cases (or 26.8%) did not result from trauma. Of the patients, 123 (or 71.5%) had undergone a single cranial procedure prior to their cranioplasty, and 43 (or 28.5%) had undergone multiple cranial procedures. Most of the patients (114 [or 66.3%]) underwent cranioplasty 90 days after undergoing decompressive craniectomy while 58 (or 33.7%) underwent cranioplasty less than 90 days after decompressive craniectomy.
ABSTRACT
Metastasis of an atrial myxoma to the brain is extremely rare1. Thus far there are only 17 cases reported, including our present case. Most of the brain metastases manifest only in 3 to 6 decades, after an average time frame of one to two years after surgical removal of parental tumour. We present a case of brain metastases of atrial myxoma in a teenager of the youngest age among all reported cases, unusually as early as 15 years old 3. The progress of the metastatic process had been insidious for three years after heart surgery, The imaging demonstrated a rather sizeable tumour by the time when the patient is symptomatic. The location of the metastatic tumour is anyhow superficial to the cortical surface, enabling complete surgical excision of the tumour easily achievable with favourable outcome.
ABSTRACT
CNS malignant astrocytoma has a descending frequency of occurrence according to site; moving from intracranial to cervical-medullary, thoracic, lumbar and extremely rare in the conus medullaris. IMSC glioblastoma are rare and de novo conus medullaris GBM is an extreme rarity. The duration of symptoms is short and the neurological & clinical deterioration are rapid. Despite aggressive treatment via surgery and radiotherapy IMSC & conus GBM still carry a grim and fatal prognosis. This is a strong motivation for developing new treatment strategy. New treatment modality like Temozolomide & gene therapy is currently in under studyand long term result is under study and review.
ABSTRACT
Background: The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of multiple factors and outcomes (ambulatory function and sphincter function) on children with myelomeningocoele (MMC) following surgical repair. Method: A retrospective chart review of children that underwent surgery for MMC in the Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia from 1 January 1990 to 31 December 2004 was conducted. Only those children who were followed-up for at least 18 months after the operation were included in the study. Results: A total of 42 children with MMC were included in the study. Approximately 79% of the MMC were located in the lumbosacral and sacral regions. Thirty (71.4%) of the children had hydrocephalus, and 28 (67.7%) had a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shunt inserted. An analysis of the association between the predictors of ambulatory status revealed that hydrocephalus (P = 0.013), the presence of a CSF shunt (P = 0.005), intact motor function at L3 and below (P < 0.001), and the presence of deep tendon reflexes (P < 0.001) were good factors of ambulatory status. Only 16.7% of the children did not have urinary or faecal incontinence. Hydrocephalus (P = 0.049) and low-level MMC (P = 0.028) were significantly associated with sphincter control. Conclusion: Multiple factors contributed to the outcomes in post-MMC repair children in terms of ambulation and sphincter function following a repair of MMC. The Spina Bifida Neurological Scale (SBNS) should be applied during the management of these children to identify neurological deterioration.